Twenty-Four Hours
by crow3man
Summary: Gealach hoped, but didn't expect to be accepted into Beacon. He expected, but didn't hope for a hard time. In the midst of his studies alongside his team, the raven faunus found himself tangled up with a group known as the Brothers Grimm, an organization that seeks one known as the Harbinger. Coverart by Bushtuckapenguin
1. Prologue: Dust and Echoes

A man, long of limb and long of body, entered a small Dust shop by the name of "Dust and Echoes." His pale skin matched blood red hair, slicked back. Sunken maroon eyes gazed at the shelves disinterestedly. He wore a white dress shirt, partially hidden beneath a black blazer with red accents. Black slacks met black dress shoes.

Upon his arrival, other patrons of the store began shuffling uneasily. The redhead exuded an aura of danger. He wandered from aisle to aisle nonchalantly, observing the merchandise with critical eyes. Soon, he stopped in front of the counter, staring the shopkeeper in the eyes.

As soon as the man stopped sauntering about, fifteen individuals -both men and women- stormed into the shop in rank and file. All wore a red long sleeve shirt under a black combat vest, a black mask with a white trimmed red hood, black cargo pants, and black combat boots with red laces and white soles. Hanging from the belt of all but one was a shotgun with a blade on the barrel, as well as a holster containing a pistol with no attachments. The final one carried a large white satchel as well as a flare gun and RPG launcher. This group formed three rows of five in front of the doors.

"Anyone who values their life," The red haired man drawled, his deep, smooth voice drawing the attention of the customers, "Would be wise to leave." When no one moved, he added, "Now."

One young man let out a short laugh. "Or what? You'll…" His gaze drifted over the armed soldiers. "Kill us?"

"Yes," The redhead replied without a moment's hesitation. "Anyone who does not leave will be shot."

As if to emphasize his point, the uniformed men and women drew their shotguns in synchronized fashion. It was impossible to say for certain what they were thinking, for the masks covered the soldier's entire faces.

That same young man looked at the soldiers, then at the red haired man. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, I am not." One soldier broke rank and whispered something to the redhead. "Thank you. You have exactly twenty seconds to decide whether or not you trust my words."

As the soldier returned to the formation, the gathered crowd shifted uneasily. Whispers and accusations flew around for a solid ten seconds. Fear took over, and everyone except for the rebellious young man and the shopkeeper fled in terror.

"I'm calling your bluff," The young man grinned.

The clerk kept his silence.

"Your funeral," the redhead replied. He pulled out a pocket watch and glanced at it. "Five seconds."

"My funeral, my ass!"

The last few seconds ticked by rather slowly.

The redhead glanced at a pocketwatch. "You're out of time," he commented, a sick smile on his face.

"Just in time to show ever- AAAAAUGH!"

The young man's next words dissolved into senseless howling as five slugs tore through his body at once, shredding his torso and internal organs. He was dead before he touched the ground. The clerk cowered behind his counter.

"Show everyone what?" The redhead laughed. "Go take anything that might be useful," he ordered. As the soldiers leaped into action, he rounded the counter to where the shopkeeper hid. "You should have run when you had the chance."

He drew a wicked pistol from within his blazer. The jet black revolver had a blade on the barrel, long and thin like it's owner. He pointed this at the base of the storekeeper's skull.

"Please, just take what you want and go quietly," the man whimpered.

"We shall do just that," the redhead sneered. He pulled the trigger, the hammer snapping forward to ignite the bullet and launch it through the man's head. "It would be bad for business if we left you alive, though."

Tucking the ebony pistol back in his blazer, the redhead strolled out of the store. Sirens wailed in the distance, drawing nearer with each passing second. He smirked as fourteen of the fifteen soldiers marched out of Dust and Echoes, carrying everything from ammunition and Dust to gasoline and magazines. They had almost looted the whole store. Two large cargo trucks were filled, one with the stolen items and the other with the soldiers. The fifteenth, the one with the satchel, ran out of the store, leaping up into the truck.

The crimson eyed man leisurely climbed into the passenger seat of one such truck. At the wheel sat a portly man, his shaggy maroon hair framing a shapeless face holding one red eye, and one black eye. He wore a red dress shirt tucked into black slacks, with black square toed shoes.

"How went the heist?" The walleyed man wondered. His baritone voice, even deeper than that of the one who led the heist, rumbled throughout the cab as the truck itself rumbled to life.

"It was as smooth as crushed velvet," the redhead replied. "There were only two deaths. And no interfering do-gooders this time, either."

"Ah ha ha ha ha ha! I'd expect nothing less of my older brother!"

"Please, get driving already. I'd rather avoid making this a bigger news story via high-speed chase and police massacre."

"You're no fun," the massive man pouted.

None the less, he eased the massive grey truck out onto the street. The second followed closely behind. Moments following, as the behemoth vehicles drove away, Dust and Echoes lit up behind them like a methane vent.

"So what did we haul out this time?"

"Dust and ammo, mostly," the lanky man replied. "Some more cheap food, and a healthy supply of magazines and simple entertainment."

"In this business, people will take pleasure in anything that isn't work," the giant chuckled.

"Such is the same for any business."

"I suppose."

Silence dominated the cab of the truck for some time. Traffic thinned on the winding streets until naught but the two trucks remained on the road, for they had entered a run down region of the city. Few came here but ruffians, gangs, and criminals. Few even of they came, for rumours abounded that the place was haunted by a ghost inhabiting a suit of armour, incinerating any who dared to enter. Despite the best efforts of the law, this rumour could be neither confirmed nor denied.

A warehouse opened up, inviting the two trucks into its cavernous interior. They parked in the far right corner, at which point a hidden camera identified them. The floor descended on well oiled wheels, a second platform closing the gap as soon as the tops of the trucks were clear. To any foolish enough to give chase to these trucks, it would appear that they entered the warehouse and vanished into thin air.

Down, down, and further down yet dropped the platform. After a minute or so, the speed indicated only by the lights flitting by above, the platform finally came to a halt. In front of the cargo trucks opened up a massive cave, lit by halogen lights in the roof and criss-crossed by all manner of catwalks. Square buildings filled the walls floor to ceiling, some even serving as pillars. Humans and faunus, the majority of whom were in good physical condition, milled about, all walking with a purpose. Some wore a uniform identical -slightly modified to accommodate the faunus- to those that joined the heist. Others walked about in casual clothing, as if they were merely citizens of the world above.

Both trucks rolled off and backed into a bay, at which point a horde of thirty uniformed men and women went about securing the hatches and unloading the cargo, as well as greeting and congratulating the returning soldiers.

"Good to be back," the fat man laughed as he climbed down from the cab of the truck. "To think that I was beginning to miss this place… AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Indeed," the lankier brother commented. "'Tis a comfort to be here, now. Almost impossible to believe that despite the ten year construction time, no one found this place. And now, no one shall."

"Don't get cocky. With each little excursion, we run a higher risk of being discovered," the younger brother cautioned.

"True enough. Come, let us see what progress has been made on the Plate."

The two men walked towards the center pillar-tower. The took an elevator to the thirteenth floor, where a group of scientists swarmed about a grey-brown triangular monolith, the one side of which was covered in ancient runes. Holoscreens and whiteboards covered in indecipherable writing plastered every wall.

In the center of the white-coat sanctuary stood a man with the scaly ridges and merciless eyes of a crocodile. He wore a purple dress shirt with a dark violet, lavender, and silver argyle tie, a black dress vest, black slacks, and brown square toed shoes. He carried with him a sense of calm, calculating authority. In his hand was a scroll, on it a single word, written in bold capital letters.

**TWIN.**

The scaled man turned to greet his new guests. "Ah! Mister and Master Payne! What a delight to have you here," he greeted. His voice, scratchy and uneven as it was, dripped with respect.

"Greetings, doctor," the taller brother replied. "How do you fare?"

"Well, well! We have made progress! A single word has been translated thus far!"

The elder Payne smiled warmly. "Excellent. I'll have a bottle of whiskey brought up for your team. I'd have you back to work on other projects though. The Plate may be fascinating, but that is all at the moment."

The doctor bowed his head. "As you wish, sir."

A smile full of sharp teeth open on his face, the crocodile faunus stepped out of the lab and into the elevator. The doors closed without a sound.

"Twin, huh?" The fat man glanced up at his older brother. "Twin what?"

"Could be anything. Let's just leave it to the researchers. Come, let's be off."

The two took the stairs down, discussing all manner of things. At the bottom, the elder brother caught an older man and sent him to fetch the whiskey for the researchers.

The two sat in a lounge on the third floor, and flicked on a television. An evening news report was playing at the moment, and the event of choice was none other than the raid on Dust and Echoes. The brothers were there just in time to watch the full report.

"At exactly noon today, the community Dust and General store Dust and Echoes exploded," the reporter began. "Eyewitness reports state that fifteen armed assailants and one apparently armed individual entered the store ten minutes before the blast. The ringleader, this man here," A picture of the elder brother appeared on screen, though blurry and distorted, "Delivered this ultimatum; 'Anyone who values their life would be wise to leave now.' Shortly after the patrons escaped the store, five loud reports were heard from within, then a sixth. Shortly after, witnesses claim that the building was looted, then detonated."

"They sure got a lot of accurate details," the younger brother commented.

"Police reports state that there were two casualties; A young man, shot five times through the torso, and the shop's owner, shot once through the back of the head. No suspect has yet been identified, nor has any of the stolen merchandise been recovered. Law enforcement assumes the local gang, the Primals, to be responsible. Investigations are underway. This has been Emily Ivory, signing off."

The feed went to commercials.

"See what I mean?" The younger brother asked. "You can't get arrogant. They're getting better."

"Yes, brother, I see what you mean."

* * *

**I would like to apologize to my readers, as I am giving this story a complete overhaul. The main character was flat, the plot was inconsistent, the other characters didn't get fleshed out, and it just felt bleh. I'm going to try and make this run around far better in every manner.**

**As always, please leave a review. It's greatly appreciated. Anyways, I don't know how regularly I'll be uploading, so please be patient. The other chapters will be longer than this.**

**Until next time.**


	2. Chapter 1: Accepted to Beacon

Gealach leaned back in his chair, meshing his fingers behind his head. Coming in at one hundred eighty centimeters, he was of above average height. A long sleeved black shirt covered his torso and arms. Dark blue pants hid his legs. Long black feathers covered his head in place of hair, tied back with a black string. The lowest hanging quills brushed between his shoulder blades. Silver eyes swept over the myriad books and papers cluttering the desk in front of him. While otherwise tidy, a scar marred his face, going over his left eye before angling sharply to the right corner of his jaw. A Scroll served as a computer monitor behind the towers of paper, playing a recent news report.

"At exactly noon today, the community Dust and General store Dust and Echoes exploded," the reporter began. "Eyewitness reports state that fifteen armed assailants and one apparently armed individual entered the store ten minutes before the blast. The ringleader, this man here," A blurry picture of a pale man with red hair wearing a black blazer appeared on screen, "Delivered this ultimatum; 'Anyone who values their life would be wise to leave now.' Shortly after the patrons escaped the store, five loud reports were heard from within, then a sixth. Shortly after, witnesses claim that the building was looted, then detonated. Police reports state that there were two casualties; A young man, shot five times through the torso, and the shop's owner, shot once through the back of the head. No suspect has yet been identified, nor has any of the stolen merchandise been recovered. Law enforcement assumes the local gang, the Primals, to be responsible. Investigations are underway. This has been Emily Ivory, signing off."

The feed went to commercials. At the same time, the feather head turned off his Scroll.

"That's the third one in five months now?" Gealach muttered. His voice carried a thick Irish brogue. "Rather odd that they would only target Dust stores…"

The teen leaned forward to grab a book off his desk, revealing two silver wing patterns on the back of his shirt. His hand hovered between two tomes, one on Dust usage, the other on sword usage. Settling on the sword usage book, he settled back in his chair, already opening the text to a marked page. Diagrams and letters fought for the limited space offered by the paper. Gealach flicked from one page to the next, eyes barely flickering.

"Oi, Gealach!" a man called from beyond the door. "The rush is about to start, you coming down or what?"

"One moment!" Gealach called back, marking the page as he did so. He stood abruptly, jamming on a pair of white running shoes and picking up a violin case before turning to run out the door and into a long hall.

Running down the hall and nearly tripping down a flight of stairs brought the teen to the main room of a well kept tavern. A podium stood in the corner closest to the bar, score already set on the face. Patrons of various shapes, sizes, and species mingled amiably, content to nurse their drinks. Behind the bar stood a stout man, with thick limbs and torso, a shaven head, and kind green eyes. He wore a simple grey tee and blue jeans, his shoes hidden beneath the counter. A slender woman with long auburn hair and blue eyes flecked with red, green, and yellow ambled around the room, carrying food and drink to the patrons. Her blue shirt and lustrous yellow skirt matched well, complimented by black high heels.

"Hey Dad," Gealach greeted. He moved the musical score from the piano bench to above the keys before sitting down at the large instrument.

"Hey kiddo," the man behind the counter replied. "What book snagged you this time?"

"I was going over sword usage again," the feathered teen replied. "Did you hear what happened earlier today?"

Gealach's father cocked an eyebrow. "You mean the Dust store explosion?"

"Yeah. Who do you figure is doing it?"

"If I knew, the police would too, kiddo."

Gealach cracked open the case, pulling out a burnished brown fiddle and bow. Within moments, the humming cords created an upbeat melody that resounded throughout the hall, lifting the crowd's spirits, both inner and alcoholic. As he played, the tune wafted outside, attracting more patrons to fill the empty seats. The dull roar nigh drowned out the violin.

The score ended, forcing the young musician to play a new tune. The next song played slightly less energetically yet far more dramatically. Sudden fluctuations in pitch and tone were commonplace.

A short man wearing a red tee, white shorts, and white running shoes, the uniform of the courier service, stepped through the large door. In his hands he clutched a letter. He hurriedly scurried over to the counter, whispering something to Gealach's father. The burly looking man whispered something back before gesturing at Gealach, to whom the courier ran to next.

"I have a letter for you from Beacon," the small man explained. He extended the envelope towards the teenage raven faunus.

Gealach accepted the envelope almost warily. "Thank you very much." As the courier walked away, the fiddler grabbed a knife off the counter and opened the painstakingly sealed envelope. Inside lay a folded paper, which he pulled out immediately. The entire letter appeared to hold the same font throughout, a fine, flowing calligraphy.

"Gealach Sciathan

Thank you for applying for Beacon Academy. I have reviewed the video you attached outlining your combat abilities and believe that you will be able to meet the level of standards we maintain."

By this point it was all Gealach could do to not jump with joy. Instead, he continued reading.

"However, your lack of official training has left me skeptical. As such, you will be graded more harshly than your peers for the first term. If you meet the standard set, you will be fully accepted into Beacon. I trust that you will put you utmost effort into your training at my school.

Sincerely,

Professor Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon"

"Uhh…" Gealach breathed.

One of the more intoxicated patrons ambled over. "Wha'sh th' matter birdie? You f'rget 'ow to talk? What's thi'sh?" The drunk man snatched the letter of acceptance from Gealach's hands. "Yer gettin' ac'shepted into a huntin' sh'chool? Well, good riddan'sh. Faunu'sh aren't good for nothing anywaysh."

Gealach reached to take the letter back, but the man held it out of reach. "How did ya' get a job here anyhow?" The feather head glared at the drunk without barrier. The drunk, oblivous to the optical daggers in his back, called to the waitress, "OY, PRETTY MISH'Y! HOW'D THE FREAK GET A JOB HERE?"

"Simple," she replied. "He's my son."

"What animal did you sh'leep with to have a Faunus a'sh a kid?" The intoxicated man demanded.

"My husband -the bartender- and I adopted him," the waitress replied. "We found him when he was just a babe, and took him in."

"Sh'tupid animal lover'sh."

As Gealach's mother attempted to placate the racist drunk, Gealach committed his face, hair length and colour, and body shape to memory. He then placed the image in the mental file "Hate" and went back to playing the fiddle, ignoring the man's further blathering. The bouncer and several irate faunus patrons came over and forcibly removed the man from the tavern. As they did so, the waitress snatched the letter from his hand.

Gealach's mother placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Sorry you had to deal with that. What was he saying about a hunting school?"

Taking the letter back, Gealach showed it to his mother. "I got accepted into Beacon!"

"Jasper, the next round's on the house," Gealach's mother called to the bartender. "Gealach got into Beacon!"

A cheer went up from the patrons, some to congratulate Gealach, others because of the imminent free booze, and a few because they had no clue what is going on. The crowd swarmed the bar. Gealach got more pats on the back in that one night than he had gotten over the last half year.

Post closing hour, after the bar finally shut down and the customers left, the teen helped his parents to tidy the hall. Putting chairs on tables, sweeping the floor, wiping down flat surfaces, and washing dishes. A more prominent spring showed in Gealach's step as he moved around from mess to mess.

"You would never know he wanted to be a hunter from the looks of him," Gealach's mother sighed.

Jasper grunted as he washed the dishes. "Well Opal, he has his path figured right out. No point in trying to stop him now. All we can hope is that he will be safe."

The raven faunus, oblivious to the couple's conversation, continued to wipe down table tops and put up chairs.

"How about that weapon he commissioned, what did he call it…" Opal muttered. "Clite Dubbed?"

"Cleiti Dubha," Gealach's father corrected. "One hell of a blade, it is."

Gealach wandered over to his parents, a massive smile on his face. "Well, I'm headed to bed," he grinned. "See you guys tomorrow!" With that, he nearly sprinted up the stairs and into his room.

"He's almost acting like he's leaving tomorrow, not a month from now," Jasper commented.

"I know," Opal agreed. "I know."

In his room, Gealach simply could not sleep. He had abandoned his day clothes for a pair of black slacks. Opting for no shirt revealed defined, but by no means large muscles. His feathers flared, unbound. Laying on his bed, or rather, tossing and turning on his bed, offered the teen no rest. The excitement of being accepted into Beacon would not allow it. Hundreds of thoughts crowded his head, centered around the prestigious academy.

"_Who will I be on a team with," _he mused. _"Where will we go? What new things will I learn? What Grimm will I fight?"_

As the hours bled away, the feathered faunus slowly drifted off to sleep. No dreams visited him that night. He awoke at twenty after eight to the sound of incessant beeping coming from his Scroll. Reaching out blindly with one hand, he slammed it down on the device, silencing it. Wobbling slightly, he climbed out of bed, collecting his day clothes before stumbling down to the bathroom.

The washroom consisted of a matched porcelain toilet and sink, as well as a glass walled stand-up shower in the corner. Towels hung from a bar next to the shower, and a knob controlled water temperature. Throwing his slacks to the side, Gealach stepped into the shower. Turning the knob slightly to the left caused warm water to cascade down.

Not wasting a moment, the feathered teen grabbed the bottle of soap and squirted a small amount into his hand. He scrubbed himself down, ignoring his feathers, before rinsing off and climbing out, snagging a towel off the rack on his way. Drying off as quickly as he could, Gealach dressed and popped his knuckles before tying his loose feathers back.

Ambling downstairs, he stepped in behind the counter and into the kitchen, where the hired cook, Cerise, a small girl with short brown pigtails and cherry red eyes, had his usual breakfast ready for him. Hashbrowns and toast crowded one side of a plate, with an omelette on the other.

"Thanks, Cerise," the feathered teen called. Lifting the plate of the ledge and towards the staff table, the teen eagerly prepared to dig in. He powered through the heaping plate, done eating as quickly as he started.

After letting his breakfast settle, Gealach wandered out into the main hall. He sat down with his fiddle, playing several musical scores until business died down. When the number of patrons dropped to it's mean lowest, he clambered upstairs and into his room.

The teen dropped to his hands and knees before reaching under his bed to pull out a large shield, Cleiti, the sides of which resembled black wings. The raven themed hilt of a sword poked out the top, displaying the shield's second function- to serve as a sheath. Drawing at the handle revealed Dubha, a four foot long falcata sword.

Gealach resheathed Basar and slung Tuiscint on his back. He walked towards a small training room he had set up four years prior. Inside, a bookshelf filled with combat tomes stood in the corner, where as the center of the room was dominated by a large empty space, a lone practice dummy standing in the center. Posters of various training and workout strategies lined the walls.

Fluidly transitioning Cleito from his back to right arm while drawing Dubha with his left, Gealach adopted a balanced stance. He slashed, blocked, and countered an imaginary opponent, often rolling or skittering to the sides.

After roughly an hour of practice, Gealach re sheathed Dubha, and returned Cleiti to under his bed. He then went downstairs to get lunch from Cerise, a simple sandwich with cheese, cucumber, lettuce, and other assorted vegetables. Once he wolfed down his sandwich, the silver eyed teen made his way out into the hall to play piano for a few hours.

Around five in the evening, he took a break to have dinner and relax his fingers. An hour and change later, he went back to playing the fiddle until the tavern closed down. After helping to clean up, he went to bed and crashed until the next morning. So went the next month of his life, with trips around Vale every few days to collect various supplies for when Gealach leaves for Beacon.

After a month both torturously long and absurdly short, the day finally came when Gealach would leave for Beacon Academy. As usual, he awoke at twenty after eight, took a morning shower, and ate a large breakfast in as little time as possible. Instead of reading or playing the fiddle as he normally would, Gealach began to cram a black duffel bag full of clothes, school supplies, and books. He jammed his Scroll into his pocket. Reaching under his bed, the teen pulled out Cleiti and Dubha, placing them beside the bag. He then reached under the bed again to pull out a pair of rounded pauldrons, a pair of greaves, two vambraces, and a pair of steel boots. These too were added to the growing duffel bag.

Gealach slung Cleiti over his shoulder and picked up the duffel bag. He strode into the hall, down the stairs, and to the door, where his parents waited.

"Good luck, sweetie," Opal offered.

"Thanks mom," Gealach returned as he wrapped her in a hug.

Japser flashed a grin. "Har! Go show 'em how it's done!" He then wrapped both Gealach and Opal in a bear hug. "You do us proud, kiddo."

"Will do, dad," the feathered teen replied wispily, suddenly tearing up.

Both parents detached themselves from Gealach, allowing him to walk out into Vale. He took one step, then another, then found he couldn't make a third. After several seconds, a rough push launched him forward, causing him to nearly collide with the door. The feathered teen turned around to see who pushed him. Jasper blatantly avoided making eye contact while Opal snickered. He offered a warm smile before taking the push for what it was, and walking out the door onto the streets of Vale.

Fifteen minutes of walking later brought Gealach to the airship terminal. Inside, clusters of people huddled around terminals, picking out flight plans. Gealach pulled out his Scroll, swiping open to a new message. A four-year airship pass downloaded onto his scroll, courtesy of the staff at Beacon Academy. A small disclaimer at the bottom mentioned that if he were to dis-enroll for any reason, the pass would be refunded.

Walking up to the student terminal, Gealach placed his scroll in the receiver with the pass open. The machine beeped and transferred an e-ticket onto the holographic omni-computer. Gealach made his way onto the airship, pausing only to verify with a second terminal that he had a ticket, and found a good spot near the window. Leaning Cleiti against the wall and placing the jam-packed duffle bag so as to prevent the shield from tipping over, Gealach sat down beside his weapon with his back to the wall, one leg pulled in closer. Pulling out a set of earbuds, he plugged into his scroll and tuned the rest of the world out.

After a dull wait, the length of which Gealach didn't bother to keep track of, the airship began to shift slightly as the enormous machine heaved itself off the ground. The feathered teen glanced at the other passengers. Most were non-descript, wearing generic clothing and carrying generic weapons, but three stood out. A little girl wearing a black and red dress with a red cloak, her weapon clipped to the small of her back and her red tinted brown hair messily cut short, a blonde girl with absurdly long hair, short shorts, and a brown leather jacket partially done up over a low-necked shirt with yellow bracelets, and a blonde boy wearing a hoodie, jeans, sneakers, and some basic upper-body armour, a sheathed sword with no apparent secondary function hanging from his belt. The first two appeared to be close. The last one didn't seem to be taking the trip too well, or at least his digestive tract wasn't.

Gealach leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes and letting his music be the only marker of the passage of time. Roughly half an hour later, he felt the ship shift as it docked. The sudden deceleration caused Cleiti to tip over, nearly landing on Gealach.

"Yike!" Barely managing to skitter out from under the edge of the shield, the mercury eyed teen picked himself up off the floor. As he did, he also picked up his duffel and Cleiti, slinging the latter over his shoulder again.

Gealach wandered towards the hatch, as did many other students. Within moments, the stairs dropped, allowing the passengers to dismount from the flying apparatus. The feather head joined the milling masses, staring in awe at the sheer scale of Beacon academy. The towering spires and gothic architecture created a very imposing image.

Pulling out his letter of acceptance from his bag, Gealach did a double take. "Well, here I am," he murmured. "Beacon Academy."

* * *

**Well, I did say that the chapters would be longer.**

**So anyways, here it is. The improved version of Twenty Four Hours. Bigger, better, the works. Huge changes from the original run have been made, centered around doing some proper research to develop the characters better. Be warned, the changes to the other characters are more staggering than Gealach.**

**I plan on setting up a regular update schedule, for this story and for Transition. I'll get back to you guys on that one in the next couple of chapters, my workload at school may not allow for it.**

**Now then, time to outline the changes. Gealach used to have the surname Solas, meaning light. Now his last name is Sciathan, meaning wing. In the first run, he wielded a Claymore capable of transforming into a railgun, named Mhean Oiche. Now he has a shield and falcata named Cleiti and Dubha. Gealach also used to be taller, and didn't have any real flaws. So now he should be a better character. Please call me out on it if I slip up on that.**

**Anyways, thank you for reading, and be sure to leave a review telling me what you think!**

**Until next time.**


	3. Chapter 2: Meet & Greet

Gealach stared up at the unnervingly large school a moment longer. He had spent years training for this, but nothing could change the fact that the sheer size alone was intimidating. That, and a distinct lack of friends here. A swarm of first year students milled about aimlessly. The raven faunus peered through the crowd of strangers, searching for a familiar face. None showed.

Somewhat disheartened, Gealach wandered towards the cliffside. The view of the forest below stole his breath. An expanse of green stretched as far as he could see, cut by a single, crystal clear river. The occasional stone face peeked out of the foliage, with even less common rocks showing above the treetops, coated in moss and grime.

"Quite the view," he murmured.

A graceful voice behind him nearly caused the feathered teen to jump out of his skin. "I know, right?"

Gealach whipped around to see Meredy walking up behind him. Her blond locks fell to the small of her back, some framing an olive face set with emerald eyes. She wore a layered metal cuirass over a mint tunic, as well as a pair of simple sandals. Sol, an arbalest crossbow, hung from her back. Multiple belts of ammunition hung from a belt around her waist.

"You really ought to not scare people like that," Gealach commented.

"Well, if you had been paying attention, you would have heard me," Meredy replied, a smug grin on her face.

"I might have, I might not have." The pale teen looked over at Meredy. "So what's your name? I'm Gealach." He offered a handshake.

"Meredy Tempus," the blonde stated. She didn't return the handshake. "So why are you here?"

Gealach pondered for a moment. "Because taking over Ma and Pa's tavern didn't really appeal to me," he reasoned.

"That's a weak reason," Meredy grimaced. "Really, you want to take up such a serious duty because taking over your parent's bar doesn't sound good? At least I have a proper goal."

Perplexed, the boy threw Meredy a sidelong glance. "I want to help people. Isn't that reason enough?"

"If helping people was reason enough to get into Beacon, a little girl could do it." As she explained, Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc walked past, unnoticed by Gealach and Meredy. "You can't just float by here. It's sink or swim, birdy. Which will it be?"

"Well, if it comes down to that, why do you swim?" Gealach argued.

"I don't have to tell you that," Meredy defended. "My reasons are my own, are they not?"

"Then why do you attack my reasons? Are they not my own?"

"... Shut up."

Gealach sighed as he sat down. "Whatever."

Without another word, he pulled his pauldrons, grieves, boots, and bracers out of his duffel was placed on the ground beside the bag as the feathered teen began to fit the armour in the appropriate locations. His sneakers went into the duffle, next to a black suit and silver tie. Once outfitted, Gealach zipped the duffle back up, picking it and his sword and shield up and wandering away.

"It was nice meeting you, Meredy," he called behind him.

"Goodbye, Gealach," she replied.

* * *

Morgun sighed heavily. The bear faunus stalked across the school grounds, her furry ears twitching in anger. She wore a blue shirt and skirt, small rounded pauldrons, metal bracers, and knee length metal and leather boots. Sapphire eyes glared out from a frame of shoulder blade length brown hair. Ljoma, a large shotgun axe with a blade shaped akin to a mosaic sun, sat on her back. Her steps were as many and quick as they were furious.

Behind her, Abden followed doggedly. The human boy had short shaved indigo hair, flame orange eyes, tanned skin, and a crooked smile. He walked along in rather extravagant getup, a red doublet under a dark orange jerkin, blue baggy pants tucked into black knee-length socks, and reddish brown pointed shoes. Off of his waist hung Schatten, a pike rifle that was currently telescoped to it's travel state, a small cylinder.

"Oh come on," Abden complained. "Have a little fun. It's just one date!"

"Abden, I told you already," Morgun seethed. "I'm not interested."

"Really?" Abden circled around in front of the shorter girl, forcing her to stop. "I do hope you're just playing hard to get, 'cause I know a few really good places. We don't have to go today, if that's the issue."

Morgun sighed again. Her fist clenched hard enough to draw blood, had she not trimmed her nails. She walked up to her harasser slowly at first, then rushed at him and planted her fist firmly under his ribs. The indigo haired teen lifted up off the ground, then slammed onto it back first as Morgun pulled her hand back.

"Are you quite done now?" Morgun demanded. Her brows furrowed at the lack of response beyond groaning. "I'll take that as a yes," The bear faunus stalked off, her day thoroughly ruined.

Abden curled up into the fetal position, not willing or able to do much more. He clutched the rapidly growing bruise. "Yeah… she's playing hard to get…"

* * *

Gealach stood in the west garden, gazing at the myriad flowers. Were his sense of smell as strong as the average person's, the scent might be overwhelming. As it is, the aroma was rather pleasant. Sweet, but not so much as to be nauseating.

Lumi wandered into the garden, a bright smile on her face. Klyma, her cane, tapped the ground in front of her repeatedly. The girl wore a brown tunic, grey pants, and white fur boots under a white fur cloak. Most curious was the blindfold she wore. White hair braided into twintails hung past her shoulders.

Gealach looked over at the newcomer. "Hello there," he greeted.

"Heyo!" Lumi smiled. "Nice to meet you! I'm Lumi."

"I'm Gealach," the feathered faunus replied.

"Sure is warm out," the white clad girl commented. "Is it a "sunny" day out? It's not raining, that's for sure."

"You can't tell?"

"I can't see," Lumi replied. "What did you think the blindfold was for? It's a terrible fashion statement, so I've been told."

"Oh." Gealach stared at the girl for a moment. "I, um, I'm sorry?"

"What are you apologizing for?"

"You being blind. It must be saddening, not being able to see."

"Oh, shush. It isn't your fault, and you have nothing to feel bad for. I've been blind since birth," Lumi explained. "My friend Chrys is always helping me understand what's going on. He should be here any moment now, actually!"

As if on cue, Chrys rounded the corner. He was a simply dressed kid, a little taller than Gealach, outfitted in a yellow tunic and muted gray pants. Xyno, a pair of high-tech looking boots, sat on his feet. A white shirt covered in more grease stains than could be counted in an hour was tied around his waist. Unblinking yellow eyes stared out from under short grey hair, a pair of grey feathery tufts forming "horns" coming up from his brows. A long burn scar marred the back of his left hand.

"Lumi, you need to stop running off like that," Chrys scolded. "Not everyone is friendly."

"Well how else am I supposed to meet people?" Lumi complained. "Besides, I have yet to meet someone that hasn't been friendly."

"We'll see how long that streak continues for…" the greater horned owl faunus grumbled. "Well, Lumi probably told you who I am already, but the name's Chrys."

"I'm Gealach," the crow faunus replied. "Nice to meet you two."

An intercom message shattered the air, disrupting the little meeting.

**"_Would all first year students please make their way to the auditorium."_**

"Well, I'll catch you two later then," Gealach offered.

"Later!" Lumi replied. Her smile was infectious, causing the raven faunus to smile back.

"Have a good day," Chrys wished. As Gealach left, he turned to Lumi. "Well, we ought to go see what all this is about."

"No duh," the blind girl deadpanned. "It's not like we're first years or anything."

* * *

The feathered faunus found the exit, joining the crowd en route to the auditorium. As he did so, he fell in step with Morgun. The two walked in silence at first, but the gleam coming off of Ljoma caught the raven faunus' eye. He stared at the intricately detailed blade.

"Do you mind?" Morgun glared over at Gealach. "My face is over here."

"Sorry," Gealach sheepishly grinned. "Your weapon caught my eye."

"Uh-huh," the bear faunus growled.

"No, really! It's a beautiful design."

Morgun glared out the corner of her eye. "Yes, it is. My mother painted it."

"Well, tell her I said she did a fantastic job."

"Who am I giving her a compliment for?"

"Sorry," The crow faunus apologized. "My name's Gealach." As with Meredy, he offered a handshake.

"Morgun," the bear faunus stiffly replied. She accepted the handshake somewhat ruefully. Her grip was firm, but not crushing.

"Any idea of what's going on?" Gealach queried.

"Not a bloody clue."

The two crowd slowly filtered it's way into the auditorium. Students of all sizes, colours, and backgrounds either chatted nervously or stared at the stage expectantly. As the last of the students found spaces, Professor Ozpin strode up to the microphone, Glynda Goodwitch following rather close behind.

"I'll… keep this brief," the Headmaster greeted. "You have travelled here in search of knowledge -to hone your craft, and acquire new skills- and when you finish, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose -direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

Gealach and Morgun shared a glance as Ozpin walked off the stage, only for Glynda to take his place at the microphone.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight," the blonde stated. "Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready." A moment passed. "You are dismissed."

"Anything about the Headmaster seem kinda distant to you?" Gealach wondered.

"Kind of," Morgun commented. "Almost like he wasn't talking to students."

* * *

That night, Gealach lay on his side, tucked snugly in his bedroll. Again, he wore simple black slacks. A book on proper application and management of Dust sat on the floor beside him. His feathers hung loose, the string with which he tied them back cast into his bag. The night was peaceful, and he was starting to drift off to sleep…

"Heellooooo! I believe you two may know each other!"

Gealach glared in the direction of the shout. "Oh for Dust's sake…"

Some girl with way too long of blonde hair dragged a shorter, less endowed girl across the entire room to see some other girl with yellow eyes, a book, and a bow.

"Aren't you the girl that exploded?" The black hair girl questioned.

"Uh, yeah!" The short brunette quipped. "The name's Ruby." She extended a hand out, offering a handshake. The black haired girl went back to reading her book. "But you could call me Crater… actually, you can just call me Ruby."

"Okay," the golden eyed girl remarked. The blonde and Ruby shared some quiet words.

The blonde turned back to the brunette. "So, what's your name?"

"...Blake."

"Well, I'm Yang! Ruby's older sister! ...I like your bow!"

Gealach simply could not see the resemblance. His eyes flicked between the two, boiling down the details. Tall, short. Blonde, brunette. Lilac eyes, silver eyes. And… busty, flat. They looked about the opposite of related.

Blake didn't even look up from her book. "Thanks."

Yang leaned forward a bit. "It goes great with your… pajamas!"

"Right…"

"Nice night, don't you think?"

The crow faunus cringed. Bringing up the weather to kickstart a conversation never went well. It was evident that, despite the sister's best efforts at getting a conversation going, Blake simply was not interested.

"Yes. It's lovely. Almost as lovely as this book." Her sharp response was clearly meant to drive the two intruding individuals off. "That I will continue to read. As soon as you leave.

Yang turned back to Ruby. "Yeah, this girl's a lost cause," the blonde remarked."

"What's it about?" Ruby asked.

Blake picked her head up. "Huh?"

"Your book. Does it have a name?"

"...It's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control of his body."

"Oh yeah... That's real lovely…" Yang grimaced.

"I love books," Ruby declared. "Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes, and monsters… They're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress."

"Why is that?" Blake laughed. "Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"

"Well, I'm hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like the heroes in the books. Someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves."

"That's very ambitious, for a child. Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

"Well, that's why we're here. To make it better."

Yang piped up, having had enough of the book talk. "Ohhh, I'm so proud of my baby sister!" She then walked over and picked Ruby up in a great bear hug.

"H-hey! Cut it out!" The younger sister squeaked. She punched her sister, leading into a full-scale brawl between siblings. The noise went from irritating to absolutely cacophonous.

"Well Ruby, Yang, it's a pleasure to-"

Blake's comment was cut off as an angry, white haired girl stormed over. "What in the world is going on over here!? Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep!?"

Both Weiss and Yang exclaimed simultaneously, "Oh, not you again!"

Ruby stated, "Shh! She's right! People are trying to sleep!"

Gealach silently thanked Ruby for understanding that sleep is a requirement, and that there were people here trying to do so.

"Oh, now you're on my side." The white haired girl seemed rather confrontational. First, she wanted quiet, now she was picking a fight? There wasn't much logic in that.

"I was always on your side!" The brunette complained.

"Yeah, what's your problem with my sister?" Yang demanded. "She's only trying to be nice!"

"She's a hazard to my health!"

The fight would have continued, had Blake not been merciful and blown out her candelabra. If Gealach weren't trying his damnedest to pass out, he would have walked over and thanked the girl. As it was, sleep drew near again, and no source of light existed to allow anything to prevent it. The feathered faunus closed his eyes and drifted off to the dreamscape.

* * *

**Well guys, I'm back! Sorry for the hiatus, but I was on a break to do some serious planning stage stuff. Figuring out a lot of plot business. And a whole bunch o' characters. Big thanks to my friends over at Arcadia Academy.**

**I hope that those of you who have been waiting for me to start back up found this worth the wait. I have had an absolute blast writing this chapter. A couple songs I had playing whilst doing so were Different Heaven &amp; EH!DE - My Heart, and Ahrix - Nova.**

**Word of warning, finals are in a week's time as of this upload. Next chapter may not be out for some time. I have three exams over the course of two days, and two of those are heavy math.**

**On that note, please leave a review. It's appreciated. It feels good to be back, anyhow! Until next time.**


	4. Chapter 3: Verdant Hell

Ilios stretched and groaned. A short, olive skinned boy, he bore cerulean eyes and teal curly hair that barely passed his ears. He pulled a shirt on, a white button up left open, as well as a pair of blue shorts and straw sandals.

Bleary and still half asleep, the blue eyed teen wandered outside. Out front stood a girl even shorter than he, Amaranth. She had both eyes and bob-cut hair a light shade of pink, while wearing a backless green dress made to appear as if constructed from leaves. Pink flowers dotted the design.

The pink haired girl glanced back at Illios. Upon seeing him, she froze, a look of static terror on her face.

"G'morning," Illios greeted.

"...Hi," Amaranth replied.

"Nice morning, hey?"

"...Yeah."

The teal haired boy cocked an eyebrow. "Is something the matter?"

"Igottagobye!" The pink haired girl sprinted away, leaving behind a very confused Illios.

"Uh, bye?" He responded. "Did I say something wrong?"

* * *

The first-year student body had collected in the locker room. As the students collected their weapons, assessed their gear and chatted with friends, they also scouted the ranks to see who would make a good partner. Many assumed they would be paired with their friends.

Meredy was no exception to the former, however she was far from the latter. The current list of her candidates she had in mind were, in order: Pyrrha Nikos, Weiss Schnee, and Morgun Sar.

Abden sauntered up behind the petite blonde. A massive, cocky grin warped his face.

"Hey blondie," the indigo haired boy greeted. "You looking for a partner? 'Cause I'm in the market for a cutie like you."

"Meredy," The blonde replied shortly. "And yes, though I seek a partner of a higher caliber than one who greets others with a flirting remark."

"Now now, no need to be hasty. How I talk and how I battle are two different things. But with you, lovely, I'd be happy to battle they way I talk, if you catch my drift." Abden tossed a wink at Meredy.

"What is that supposed to mean?" The blonde replied.

"Think dirty about it," Abden answered.

A stunned silence drove a wedge in the young conversation.

"Did you just…" Meredy seethed. "Did I just hear what I think I heard? Get out of my sight, you lecherous imbecile!"

Abden threw one hand into the air, the other clutching at the center of his chest. He swayed dramatically, a grimace of mock agony on his face. "Oh, how you wound me so!" The flame eyed teen collapsed to his knees. "Thy tongue is as sharp as thy blade and ever the more hurtful to bear."

The mint-eyed girl whipped around and stalked away without another word. Abden watched her walk away with a small pout on his lips.

"Well, aren't you ever an uptight little thing?" He muttered under his breath.

* * *

At the cliffs, the student body was lined up on plates bearing the sigil of Beacon. The vast expanses of the Emerald forest stretched out below them, unending and untainted. All of the students present listened attentively to the speech of Headmaster Ozpin.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." Ozpin greeted.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumours about the assignment of teams," Glynda offered. "Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates… today."

"Is that so?" Gealach mumbled.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time, here at Beacon," Ozpin added. "So it is in your best interests to be paired with someone with whom you can work well."

Morgun's gaze drifted over the few people she had talked to the previous day. No names jumped out that met the previously stated criteria.

"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

Abden chuckled as he checked over the girls. His gaze grew more serious when he glanced at some of the guys.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die."

Meredy reached for her myriad ammo pouches, feeling them and taking comfort in the weight of the bolts and bullets.

"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path, containing several relics. Each pair must choose one, and return to the top of the cliff. We will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately." The headmaster glanced at the students, his speech over. "Are there any questions?"

Jeane raised a hand. "Yeah, um, sir-?"

"Good!" Ozpin interrupted. "Now, take your positions."

Gealach drew Tuiscint and Bas ar, placing the shield in front of himself with the sword behind him.

Ljoma telescoped into full shotgun mode as Morgun drew it, a bullet in the chamber by the time the barrel was in the bear faunus' hands.

Meredy loaded a corded bolt into Sol before cranking back the drawstring. He crossbow made a satisfying "click" as the string caught.

Schetten exploded to full length in Abden's hands. The barrel of the rifle poked out from behind the blade-like head of the pike.

"Uh, sir? I've got, um, a question," Jeane continued.

Weiss launched into the air, the platform below her thrusting outwards.

"So, this, landing strategy thing, uh, wha-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off, or something?"

"No," Ozpin rebuffed. "You will be falling."

"Oh, I see… So, did you, like, hand out parachutes first?"

Gealach felt the platform beneath him shift ever so slightly. The raven faunus lifted Tuiscint. As the plate triggered, he jumped, adding his own force to the launch.

"No. You will be using your own landing strategy."

Morgun tensed up as the plate fired. When the ground fell away beneath her, the brunette stifled vomit. Vertigo came crashing in like a tidal wave.

"Ah, ha, yeah."

Meredy and Abden launched within seconds of one another. As the latter flew into the air, he whooped, performing a flip. The former kept her eyes on the trees.

"So, uh, what exactly is a landing strategyYYYY~?!" The blonde knight's question was cut off as the platform beneath him exploded outward, throwing him into the forest.

* * *

With vertigo throwing off her depth perception, Morgun started firing to slow her descent a tad late. She crashed into the ground with a resounding THUD. The bear faunus picked herself up off the ground, Ljoma opening up as a fan would. The golden axe glowed as Burn Dust wrought into the blades heated the metal.

Snapping branches and the baying of Beowolves in the distance caught Morgun's attention. She ran towards the source, hacking down any tree that dared stand in her path.

Not far away, Gealach thundered towards the ground, the wind whistling between the feathers of Tuiscint. He ducked behind the great shield and pressed his shoulder into it. Twigs, branches, and thin trunks gave way to the violent intrusion, save for one. When the feathered faunus hit the final tree in his path, it proved stronger. Gealach's head slammed into his shield moments before the feathered teen dropped like a stone.

"Son of a…" he groaned. "Well, no time for that."

The feathered teen looked up from his shield and found himself face-to-face with a rather large Beowulf. Black, tar-like drool dripped from it's mouth, it's tongue lolling out carelessly. The creature sniffed Gealach twice before rearing back, letting out an ear-splitting howl.

At the call of the giant, no fewer than three dozen of the black hounds swarmed out of the underbrush. They spread out around Gealach, cutting off all escape routes in a matter of seconds. The circle began to close as the raven faunus sheathed Basar in Tuiscint, pulling a trigger to drop the temperature of the blade to bone-chilling levels.

The alpha lunged at Gealach, who unsheathed his blade and slashed upwards in the same motion. A short sidestep pulled the Alpha out of the way. Gealach shifted his slash precisely one-hundred and thirty five degrees, bringing it down in a diagonal chop. The Alpha dodged once more, with unnerving ease.

With a swipe of it's claws, the gargantuan abomination launched Gealach back into the tree he had crashed into. The feathered teen shook his head to clear the stars in his vision and threw a horizontal slash, this attack netting more than the previous two as it nicked the Alpha on the arm and drew a small amount of blood.

"GRRROOOOH!"

The creature rushed forward to disembowel Gealach. Rebalancing his stance, the feathered teen raised his shield in anticipation. His confusion was near corporeal when the attack never impacted.

Morgun wrenched Ljoma out of the Alpha's back with practiced ease. The golden blade dripped with tar-like blood, an acrid stench filling the air. Fire burned in the bear faunus' azure orbs. Her fierce glare glossed over the remainder of the Beowolf pack.

"What, all it took to make you freaks wise up was one kill?" She taunted.

One Beowolf howled, followed by another, then three more, spreading through the pack like a wave, building to a crescendo of snarling and guttural bellows. They descended upon the duo in a cascade of black, white, and red.

With the barrel of Ljoma over her shoulder, Morgun cocked the shotgun and dropped into a sharp battle stance. The first of the werewolf-esque fiends came within arms reach of the bear faunus. A loud report echoed in the mid-morning air.

It's head having been liberated from it's shoulders, the Beowolf hit the ground in a heap. Yet another lupine abomination met a similar fate. Morgun unloaded a round into the chest of one leaping Beowolf, directing the recoil to bisect a fourth that had gotten behind her.

Gealach bided his time, waiting for a clean opening. One presented itself, or rather, forced itself upon him. A Beowolf lunged towards the raven faunus with it's mouth wide open. Instinct kicked in and Gealach slammed Tuiscint into the Grimm's face before splitting it's head open. He looked up to find a second Beowolf about to sink it's teeth into his neck.

"Go hifreann leat!"

Bas ar's hilt collided with the Grimm's ribcage, throwing it backwards. Gealach's breaths came heavy and fast, accompanied by shudders of exhaustion. He stumbled out of the way of another swipe.

While Gealach struggled with fighting one Beowolf, Morgun slaughtered them two, three, four at a time, each chop and shot hitting their marks with unnerving precision. The bear faunus butchered half of the pack in the span of a few minutes. Ljoma barely had time to let the smoke out after one shot before another rang out, belting out a cacophonic symphony of death. In the instant that the last Beowolf about her fell, she shifted gears and shifted targets.

Morgun leaped over the raven fauns, twirling mid-air to bury Ljoma in the Beowolf's shoulder. One pull of a trigger later, and the Grimm fell in twain. She shot one more in the head and used the recoil to slash upwards at the last of the creatures, shattering it's jaw. The creature had time only to howl in frustration before Ljoma took it's head.

"That's that," Morgun huffed. She sheathed Ljoma, the axe-blade folding up and the entire handle shrinking in towards the blade. "Not much of a challenge. You alright there?"

"Yeah, I think I'm good," Gealach replied. "Couple o' scratches."

"Against Beowolves?"

"They were a little too fast for me."

"Huh. You'll need to work on that."

Sheathing Bas ar and placing the shield-sheath on his back, Gealach straightened himself out and looked his partner in the eye. "Well, northward, yes?"

* * *

Meredy wasted no time launching her tether bolt into the sturdiest tree she could find. The bolt flew straight and true, lodging itself in the thick bark and turning the blonde into a pendulum. As she passed under the branches, she severed the cord. The girl stopped skidding along several seconds after contact with the dirt.

Taking a moment to lock in a standard issue crossbow bolt, Meredy set off to find the temple and whomever would be her partner.

* * *

Abden flew through the air in a lazy aileron roll. Schatten drifted alongside him, within reach but otherwise free from his grip. He snatched the pike out of the air and fired straight down, launching himself back towards the sky. As the indigo haired teen neared the trees, he fired again, the recoil throwing him skyward.

He repeated this process for several minutes before finally falling into the dense forest. His landing brought him down amongst a cluster of shattered trees and trampled undergrowth. A streak of this destruction ran north-east, almost aligning with the ancient temple.

As he walked along, Abden took note of the eerie lack of sound. Even the birds had fallen silent in whatever had come through earlier. Massive, three toed footprints scarred the ground left and right, more than a few stained red.

Rustling in the bushes to his immediate left drew Abden's attention as if it were lightning to a rod. He whipped around, Schatten at full length and cocked, ready for anything. A crossbow bolt flew out from the underbrush, nearly skewering Abden's right shoulder. He almost stabbed in response, only stopping due to a simple fact: Grimm can't use crossbows.

"Anyone in there?" He called out.

"Dear Dust, why me?" Came the reply. Meredy pulled herself out from the foliage, looking Abden square in the eye. "The theropod Grimm that came through earlier would be preferable…"

"Don't mind me, miss," Abden replied, "But what the Dust tore up the forest like this?"

"A pack of Grimm attacking anything and everything in their path. They were squabbling a whole lot, too."

The ominous silence fell to pieces as Abden broke out into cacophonous laughter. "Really? You expect me to believe that not only were there Grimm attacking wildlife for no reason, but also EACH OTHER!? And I thought I was the jokester here!"

Meredy slammed her hand over Abden's mouth and pulled him into the bushes, accidentally pulling him down on top of her.

"Well, if you insist," The flame eyed teen replied. "Knew carrying arounds some con-"

His sentence never ended, as Meredy pressed his jaws shut and put a finger to her lips before pulling Abden down beside her. As she did so, the ground began to rumble in rhythmic fashion, akin to a heartbeat.

Two massive Grimm, reminiscent of four-eyed Tyrannosaurus Rex, thundered down the splintered trail. They snapped at one another's necks savagely, paying no heed to anything but their own fight as they stepped directly over Abden and Meredy.

When the ground ceased to shudder, Meredy let Abden up off the ground to speak again.

"Well, I never would have guessed," Abden replied. "That was… something else."

"Let's get the relic and get out," the blonde stated. "I want no part in their fight."

"Good plan," Abden replied.

The duo followed the broken path to a clearing directly in front of the temple. They discussed momentarily, before grabbing the white bishop piece and preparing to set off.

* * *

Ilios swung Potami at a tree, the ribbon-esque whip wrapping itself around a branch and pulling taught. The blue haired boy released his whip's stranglehold on the branch when he neared the peak of his swing, launching himself forward in an arc. He was surprised, to say the least, when he encountered the pink-haired girl from before, especially considering how she had bolted off in sheer terror at their last meeting. Then again, to him, meeting anyone twice in or around a school this massive was incredible.

Amaranth was no less surprised, though anyone would have surprised her. She made eye contact only long enough to confirm partnership before flaring her aura, suddenly shrinking down to the size of a bee.

Before Ilios was quite certain of what had happened, Amaranth had dropped into his pocket with nary a word.

"Really not much of a talker, are you?" The blue haired boy questioned.

"...N-Not one-on-one," came the reply, though it was far too muffled and quiet for Ilios to hear.

* * *

Lumi drifted through the air. The sense of weightlessness was unnerving, to say the least. Try as she might, determining how close she was to the ground was impossible. At this point, all she could do was to trust in Chrys' promise, and hope that Xyno would carry him to her fast enough.

At the same time, Chrys was already launching himself in the direction of the fading white-cloaked speck. Xyno's thrusters fired at max power, allowing the owl faunus to effectively glide towards his fast-falling friend. Despite the boost, it was far from enough to catch up to Lumi.

Chrys had barely touched the ground before breaking out into a full sprint. Each dirt-churning step was enhanced by a blast of hot air. Trees rose before and fell behind with greater and greater speed, the scenery beginning to blur at the edges of Chrys' vision.

Lumi's falling form became visible to him again, her fur cloak nearly brushing the trees. It snagged on a wayward branch, throwing the alabaster haired girl in a circle, launching her back over towards Chrys. Before he had a chance to jump, Lumi soared past him. The owl faunus leaped into the air, flipping himself around to chase back after her.

Upon touchdown, Xyno clamped onto the ground, slowing Chrys. He sprinted back the other way and leaped a second time, this time managing to catch Lumi and sling her into a fireman's carry. The only reason that the girl knew that ground had been reached was because her feet were placed on it moments later.

She planted Klyma firmly on the ground, using it to even out her shaky steps. Her head swiveled around, ears drinking in every little sound so as to build an aural map.

"Shall we get moving?" Lumi suggested. "Not like we can get anywhere just standing around, right?"

"Ya," Chrys agreed. "Follow me."

* * *

Morgun cut down one final branch to clear the route to the temple. She stepped out into the open space and sighed a deep sigh of relief. Gealach followed her out, barely pausing before walking over to the temple and surveying the pieces.

"Which do you figure?" He asked.

"Who cares?" Morgun replied, nonchalantly snatching up the remaining white bishop and tucking it away.

"Fair point."

"HEEEEEEY!" Abden waved at Morgun and Gealach from halfway down the clearing, a massive smile on his face. "Long time no see, Morgun! Still 'considering' my offer?"

"No, you lech," The bear faunus replied. "Best we get going back to Beacon now, isn't it?"

"Yeah, you have a point there," came the faint reply.

Cracking and snapping of branches drew the quartet's attention to the south east. The source was far too small and slow to be a Grimm, yet the quartet readied their weapons none the less.

Lumi and Chrys burst from the bushes, a look of utter shock on the latter's face. In an instant, Meredy, Morgun, Abden, and Gealach relaxed, lowering their weapons.

"Hello again," Gealach greeted warmly. "Didn't think I'd meet up with you guys again so soon."

Chrys wandered over to the temple, picking up the black rook piece. "Small forest. The chances of running into someone familiar here are quite high."

Ilios joined the group from behind the temple's decaying archetecture. He snatched up the nearest piece and stuffed it in a pocket before even taking a look at what it was, forcing Amaranth out.

"Come on, girl," He insisted when she wouldn't show herself. "Stand tall. You're fine with us."

A muffled "No" sounded out from behind Ilios' left foot.

The cerulean haired teen sighed. "Well, nice to meet you all. I'm Ilios, and I don't know my partner's name."

"Amaranth," the pink haired girl stated. She had not yet removed herself from Ilios' achilles tendon.

"Top o' the morning to ya," Gealach replied.

"It's noon," Meredy corrected.

"It's morning enough."

"No, it's-" Meredy cut her sentence short as a rumble in the turf, rhythmic as a heartbeat, careened towards the eight teenagers.

"What is that?" Morgun demanded.

"Well, we're probably fucked," Abden offered. "Right, blondie?"

"If we are to be crude about it, yes," Meredy replied. The whole of her eyes clouded over with foggy green. Moments later, they cleared again, revealing eyes shivering in unadulterated terror. "Despots," she murmured. "Two of them, at the crowning threshold."

"At the what?" Chrys asked.

"One of them is about to go Royal," the blonde explained.

"As in we are about to be royally screwed," Abden added on. He pointed Schatten at the trees, in the direction of the approaching Grimm.

The other six followed his lead, readying their weapons. Amaranth first returned to her full, if still diminutive, stature, then drew her crescent-like blades as well, a slight shimmer in her step.

Branches snapped, trees toppled, and the very earth screamed in agony as the two Despots charged into the clearing, at first paying no heed to the children in front of them, so consumed were they in their feud. The larger of the two glanced left for a moment, catching sight of the mish-mash of teenagers, and suddenly all four hateful eyes were focused solidly on them. Four became eight mere moments later.

The larger of the two Despots rushed forward, roaring as it's gaping maw descended towards the eight young adults.

* * *

**FUCKING. FINALLY. Am I right? I'm terribly sorry this took so long. To make a long story short, I got a job and life happened. I would promise to try and be a bit more consistent, but we have seen what becomes of that before. I will, however, promise quality. Shitty jobs don't take long to concoct.**

**Anyhow, meet the Despot. T-Rex Grimm. I made this thing early on, when I sucked at writing, and have since fixed it up with some help from a friend.**

**If you guys couldn't tell, I have difficulties with this kind of chapter, part action and part not. It's just so weird for me to work with.**

**Last, but not least, thanks for sticking around and reading this stuff. As always, reviews are appreciated, as are follows. I seriously hope to up my game here, I have so many ideas for this story. To stop now would be a waste. Anyhow, until next time.**


	5. Chapter 4: Trial by Fire

Gealach thanked his lucky stars that Meredy had warned them. The Despot's jaws crashed together with bone-shattering force where he had been standing mere moments prior, and would have undoubtedly killed him were it not for the previously mentioned warning.

A Despot is already a dangerous creature, possessing teeth and jaws strong enough to tear apart stone like molding clay. When there are anywhere from three to five of these fiends in a coordinated pack, a Hunter's worst nightmare is halfway realized. A Despot at the Crowning Threshold loses it's pack hunting instinct and tries to devour its packmates.

That in mind, while the larger Despot lunged savagely at the young adults in front of it, the smaller one snuck around to the flank of it's sole remaining packmate. With fury and hatred that only a Grimm could be capable of, it launched itself into the larger Despot, shutting its vice-like jaws around its neck.

The teens watched as the titanic struggle of the Despots rekindled. The larger Despot could not shake the smaller off, nor could it contort its neck or reach far enough with its claws to obtain a secure hold. Cunning outweighed size, and the bigger of the two theropod Grimm collapsed, spasming and snarling in a desperate bid for the upper hand. It fell under its packmate's savage assault.

"What the Dust…" Abden breathed, entranced by the spectacle in front of him.

Satisfied that the other could no longer escape, the smaller Despot feasted upon the larger, tearing off great strips of flesh and swallowing them in a gluttonous manner. Before the eight first-year students present, the smaller Despot began to grow.

"Now would be a good time to run," Meredy advised.

"Noted," Gealach replied.

"What's going on?" Lumi asked.

"A Grimm is in the middle of eating another Grimm," Chrys explained. "And we are taking this opportunity to leave with our lives."

"This is a good plan," the snow haired girl replied. "I like this plan. Let's leave now."

As quietly as eight armed and armoured individuals may, the students crept away from the Despot and it's grim meal, breaking out into a full sprint at the edge of the clearing.

Unfortunately, they had spent too long talking and not running. The Despot tore the last strip of flesh from its companion's bones, leaving the remains to evaporate. It let out a mighty roar as it underwent the final growth spurt, becoming a Royal Despot.

It turned around to find the teens that had recently run off, and watched as Amaranth disappeared into the trees. Another bloodcurdling roar echoed across the forest, sending flocks of birds flying away as fast as their wings would take them. The Royal Despot gave chase, crossing the clearing in a matter of seconds and barely slowing at the trees.

Hunger and anger drove the beast into a frenzy. It lunged at the sound of a twig snapping just off to it's right, pulling out a struggling, screaming doe deer. The creature barely had a moment to let out another shriek of horror before it fell into the Royal Despot's insatiable gullet. A third bellow shook the trees.

"What the Dust is that!?" Lumi demanded.

"I would assume that to be the Royal Despot," Chrys replied. "It sounds like it found something. Not a human. Or a faunus."

"What? But Grimm only attack wildlife in territory disputes!"

"This one seems to consider everything it's territory."

"Let's hope that Beacon can do something about it then."

The Royal Despot smashed over another tree, rising up behind the fleeing students. A long, throaty roar threw the octet into overdrive.

"Make like eggs and scramble!" Gealach shouted.

The eight teenagers exploded off in two general directions, momentarily confusing the Royal Despot. However, Lumi was slower than the others to escape, directing its attention on her. The carnivorous behemoth gave chase, thrashing through the underbrush with merciless abandon.

Amaranth, Chrys, Ilios, and Lumi pounded ground like never before, with the latter only avoiding tripping because of Chrys' help. The Royal Despot had followed them into a particularly thick section of the forest, slowing it immensely as it forced it's way through the trees.

None the less, the creature was relentless. It pushed over anything in it's path to keep up the chase, regardless of risk and reward. Its fetid, rotten breath warmed the heels of the fleeing teens despite their desperate sprint. Jagged teeth slammed shut on the air where Lumi's cloak had been moments prior.

"This... is... bad…" Lumi panted. "We… can't keep… running… forever…"

And indeed they couldn't. The trees gave way to a clearing, and at one end of the clearing the ground fell away to depths unknown. The cliff gave a tantalizing view of a greater cliff, one which the Royal Despot would require days to find a way up to the top of.

* * *

While Lumi, Chrys, Amaranth, and Ilios struggled to find a way to escape the Royal Despot, Gealach, Abden, Meredy, and Morgun took a much needed breather in a small cave. After a couple minutes of catching their breath, they discussed what to do.

"We can't just leave them to deal with that thing on their own," Gealach stated.

"No shit," Morgun replied. "But how are we going to fight it?"

"With our weapons, of course," Abden offered.

The bear faunus glowered at her blue-haired companion. "See previous statement."

Meredy look thoughtfully at Sol. "We knock it over," she ordered.

"How will that help?" Abden wondered.

"The Royal Despot is extremely top heavy," the blonde explained. "We can crush it under it's own mass if we can trip it."

"And how would we do that?" Gealach asked.

"Simple," Meredy replied. "You and your absurdly large shield will draw it's aggression. Abden and Morgun will harass it. Aim for tendons. I will take a corded bolt and string it between two trees. Gealach, you will then lead it over the cord and make it trip."

"Sounds like a plan," The raven faunus agreed.

"Agreed," Morgun tacked on.

"Well, since it's such a cute girl asking," Abden resigned, "I can't help but to go with it."

Meredy's eye twitched. "With that out of your system, let's get-"

She froze as a long, deep breath drifted out of the cave. Snuffling echoed from within, preceding a pair of glowing, hateful red eyes. The Krait's long, draconian body slithered into the light, midnight black wings unfurling slightly at the sight of prey. It's serpentine neck arched upwards, claws flexing in anticipation. The masked monster opened its mouth, letting out a drawn-out hiss. An orange glow lit the back of it's throat.

"RUN!" Abden shrieked.

The four young adults bolted out of the cave. Gealach and Meredy ran to the left, Morgun and Abden to the right. No sooner than they had cleared the exit did a torrent of fire rush forth from the Krait's gaping maw, intent on charring all to a crisp.

"Meredy, got any ideas?" Gealach demanded.

"I- uh- what if-" The blonde stammered.

The Krait rushed out of the tunnel, leaping into the air and opening its wings to their fullest extent. The draconian monster soared into the skies. It's mouth overflowed with flames, so much so that it appeared to have streamers attached to it's cheeks. Swooping in over the quartet, it let out a second stream of flame, then a third. The forest around the teens caught fire in seconds.

"We have a problem here!" Abden howled, patting down a fire that had caught on his shirt.

When the Krait came in for another strafe, Morgun shifted Ljoma into shotgun form and fired at the Grimm. Most of the shots missed, but one clipped the Krait's wing. It shuddered mid-flight and pulled away to swing around again. Gealach took note of this immediately.

"Meredy, what can you do with that crossbow?"

"Sol can fire an assortment of Dust bolts and can turn into a machine gun."

"Fill the air with bullets. We need to knock this thing out of the sky."

Meredy looked up at the canopy. "And how am I supposed to do that?"

Gealach sighed. "Morgun! Abden! Get a move on!"

"Why?" Morgun howled back.

"We need to find a clearing, now get moving!"

The four teens bolted away from the Krait. Flames still trailing from its cheeks, the draconian Grimm gave chase, unleashing streams of fire hither and yon to try and shepherd the quartet back to its den.

The effort was in vain.

Meredy burst out of the trees first, coming upon a sheer cliff, the likes of which would take hours to climb, hours that they lacked. She dove into a roll, Sol transforming into a machine gun halfway through. Before her feet planted back on the ground, Meredy twisted herself around to face the other way and landed in a crouch.

Abden launched himself out next, pole-vaulting with Schatten to dodge the end of a stream of fire. His arc carried him down to the left of the blonde. The Krait's furious roaring caused the trees to reverberate, as if they too shook with fear.

This roar was matched by the roar of the Royal Despot, yet within the trees a scant half-kilometer away, near a ravine.

Morgun broke through the underbrush to join her companions. The bear faunus radiated an aura of fury so thick it nearly rippled the grass.

Gealach emerged last, fending off the Krait's most recent blast of flame with his shield, the metal beginning to glow with the heat. He stumbled back towards his companions.

The Krait swooped above their heads, circling around to strafe them with flames once more.

"Meredy, knock it out of the sky," Gealach ordered.

The blonde merely grumbled in response, before unleashing a storm of bullets into the air, always aiming slightly ahead of the winged behemoth. The belt of ammo that fed Sol flew out of the body of the gun at alarming speeds, the end closing in fast.

Holes scattered throughout the Krait's wings sent it into an uneasy spiral, which it soon pulled out of.

* * *

The Royal Despot bellowed at the fleeing four in front of it. Jagged white teeth crashed shut mere centimeters behind Amaranth, who evaded the attack only be shrinking herself and disappearing into the bushes.

With it's target having vanished, the Grimm focused on the next nearest prey: Lumi. It snarled at the blind girl and snapped at her heels. She yelped and put on a sudden burst of speed, only to trip on a root. The Royal Despot loomed over it's prey, salivating like a floodgate opened.

Chrys launched himself at the saurian Grimm, Xyno opening up into claws. "You get the hell away from her!" he snarled.

The claws of Chrys' boots dug into the Royal Despot's flank, and he wasted no time in tearing chunks of caustic meat from the beast's bones. It howled in fury and bit at the owl faunus. It's teeth clashed on empty air, for Chrys literally walked upside-down on its belly to the other side of it's body, ripping out more muscle as he went.

Lumi picked herself up and ran towards Ilios.

"Come on," She panted.

"Aye," Ilios replied.

Amaranth appeared beside them, regaining her full size. "Wait for me!"

"Chrys, let's go!" Lumi howled.

"Get going!" Chrys replied.

"Don't be a hero, you moron! All you're doing is irritating that thing!"

Indeed he was. The Royal Despot paid no heed to the scattered bits of it littering the forest floor, so absorbed was it in it's attempts to remove Chrys from this world.

"And I'm doing a damn good job of it, too. I'll catch up with you!"

"Are you fricken' kidding me? RUN!"

The Royal Despot glared daggers at the three teens not tearing it's skin up, sending them into a panic.

"Lumi, listen to him," Ilios advised. "He's covering our backs, so give the guy a chance."

Amaranth nodded her agreement.

"...Fine," Lumi conceded. Her voice quivered as she said, "Chrys, make sure you catch up."

The three continued running, leaving Chrys to distract the Royal Despot.

As the quartet escaped the restriction of the trees, Ilios suddenly latched onto Lumi's arm, narrowly stopping her from running clear off of a sheer cliff. They teetered on the edge for a moment, before the blue haired boy could pull the girl back and topple onto the grass.

"Okay, so what is the situation?" Lumi demanded. Her voice had turned stable, almost icy, and dripped with authority.

"That owl faunus is keeping the Royal Despot busy while we escape," Ilios explained, "But we've hit a rather severe snag: There's a sheer cliff in the way."

"Weapon assessment?"

Ilios glanced at his waist. "I have a net-whip. Amaranth over there," He gestured to where the petite fae girl had risen out of the grass, "Has a pair of crescent blades. They seem to be Dust conductive."

"Does the cliff go up or down?" The blind girl inquired.

"Down."

"I have an idea," She announced.

* * *

Meredy slammed her third ammo belt into Sol, grimacing at the final one hanging from her waist. More rounds filled the air as the machine gun howled its fury to the sky. Periodic reports broke through the incessant whine, for Abden and Morgun had joined the attack.

The Krait swooped and dived, bullets whistling above and below, left and right, few making their mark. Those that did would send the behemoth tumbling momentarily before it righted itself and continued to wait out its prey's ammo supply. All was going rather smoothly for it, until Meredy loaded her last ammo belt, a belt of Fire Dust rounds.

Anyone familiar with physics knows that hot air rises. Meredy fired dozens of bullets under the Krait, the explosions raising the temperature of the air below the draconian Grimm, specifically under its right wing. Only a couple moments later, the Krait flew into a clockwise spiral, arcing towards the ground with a shriek of disorientation and hatred.

"Nice shooting," Gealach commented.

"I know," Meredy replied, an arrogant grin on her face.

The raven faunus threw a sidelong glare at the smaller blonde.

The Krait had barely even touched dirt before Morgun launched herself at it, howling like a woman possessed as she lifted Ljoma over her head. Her axe buried itself deep in the Krait's shoulder, entirely disabling one of its wings. She wrenched the golden blade out and cut the other wing clean off, fully grounding the Krait. This all happened whilst the Grimm still slid along the ground towards the party of three.

"Not so tough now are ya?" Morgun roared, leaping back to join the other three.

A roar rippled the grass as the Krait rose to its feet. Orange lit the back of its throat, the fire building as it stood. A ball of flame -rather than its usual jet- blasted forward. Gealach intercepted it, Cleiti taking the brunt of the hit, the Ice Dust in the shield working immediately to cool it down.

"Morgun, lop off its other wing!" Gealach ordered. "Abden, poke 'er in the belly! Meredy, keep up the heavy fire!"

Morgun was the fastest on her job, bullrushing the Krait a second time. It whipped her with its tail before she reached it, throwing the bear faunus into a tree.

"Morgun!"

"GRAAAAAAAH!" She screeched. Morgun burst from the splintered remains of the tree, her aura flared, entirely ignoring the fact that her back was so loaded with slivers she could be mistaken for a hedgehog.

Ljoma flew towards the Krait, burying itself in the Grimm's one remaining wing. A yowl of pain escaped the beast, before its attention returned to the irritating and rather obnoxiously dressed human before it. Schatten pierced the Krait's belly repeatedly, yet the Krait could not bite down on the boy, nor could it rend him apart with its claws. He seemed to flicker out of the way each time it tried, his aura flaring as he did so.

Gealach drew the Krait's ire with a shout, a primal war cry that would inspire fear in a lesser creature. He slammed Dubha against Cleiti repeatedly, rhythmically, creating even more noise. Morgun took the opportunity to leap on the Krait's back and begin hacking off its remaining wing. As the webbed appendage fell, the Krait shook itself, throwing Morgun in front of itself. Meredy dodged out of the way, and continued firing.

Once more, an orange glow lit the back of the beast's throat, aimed squarely at Morgun's prone form.

"Shite!" Gealach yelp, rushing to try and regain the Krait's aggression, to no avail.

As the bear faunus picked herself up, the Krait belched up a torrent of fire, engulfing her. The flames continued unabated, reducing grass and bushes to ashe behind where Morgun once lay.

"No…" The raven faunus breathed. "You BASTARD!"

He sheathed Dubha within Cleiti, thumb on a trigger near the base of the falcata's blade. Running forward, the straps that held Cleiti to his arm became loose. His reckless charge ended in an instant.

Ljoma's golden blade arced out of the flame, descending to cleave the Krait's cranium in two. Bone, skin, muscled, and bone once more parted under the duress of an angry berserker's axe. The creature jerked twice, then fell, dead before it hit the ground. In front of its corpse stood Morgun, blackened by ash and fire, her clothes burned through in a number of places.

"I'm… fine…" she growled, before wobbling hither and yon, finally landing flat on her back.

"That was… something else," Meredy remarked, Sol collapsing to clip onto her waist again.

"One way to show skin," Abden replied. "Not sure if I'm a fan though," he added, letting Schatten telescope back down into a silver tube. "I mean, she's a wreck right now." He clipped the pike to his belt.

"We'd best be gettin' back to the school now," Gealach advised, "Rather than gawk at a wounded ally." He put Cleiti on his back, and knelt down to pick Morgun up.

In that moment, her aura ran out. Morgun let out a scream to rival a banshee's writhing in agony as her seared flesh rubbed against itself with each jerky movement. Her eyes rolled upwards until all that showed was her whites, the piercing scream refusing to end.

* * *

Chrys ran like the wind. Behind him, the Royal Despot ran like thunder; Fast, and really loud. It bellowed at the one who had been a thorn in its side for too long. The owl faunus broke through the treeline and kept running.

"Chrys, jump!" Lumi shouted.

Potami coiled around Chrys' wrist, and he grabbed a hold of it. Ilios gave him a knowing smile before planting his feet shoulder width apart, angled away from the cliff. The Royal Despot paid no heed to the other teenagers present. It charged blindly after Chrys, hatred glowing in its four crimson eyes.

Chrys held faith in his friend's words. He leaped from the cliff, his grip tightening around Potami. The Royal Despot followed him off. For several seconds, the two hung in a peaceful freefall. Then Potami drew taut, pulling Chrys in an arc towards the cliffside. He landed feet first.

Looking back over his shoulder, the owl faunus watched as the Royal Despot fell into the yawning void. Echoing bellows drifted free of the mist below, and for all ironic purposes, it seemed as if the Royal Despot had been itself swallowed by a greater fiend.

Between Ilios hauling him up, and his own climbing, Chrys was back on flat ground within a minute.

"Lumi… warn me… next time… okay?" Chrys panted.

"You insisted on staying behind," Lumi argued back.

"Fair… enough…"

Ilios let out a hearty laugh, both for having survived such a harrowing ordeal unscathed and for the good-natured bickering. "Come now, let's be headed back now."

"Yes, let's," Amaranth agreed.

Ilios stared at the petite girl in shock. "You can talk? NORMALLY?"

"Yeah, Kinda. I sorta don'tliketalkingoneonone…" Her voiced trailed off into nothingness, the usual shyness setting back in almost immediately.

Ilios sighed. "Well, that's-"

Agonized shrieking caught their collective attention. Naught but a nod was shared before the group ran towards the sound.

* * *

**More consistency has been achieved! The way things are looking right now, I may just be able to push out a chapter for every Saturday. Granted, that's just how things are looking, but we shall see.**

**I hope that I've avoided most of the really dumb mistakes. Actually, I hope I avoided all of them. But realistically, I missed a few. So most is what I shall hope for.**

**As always, reviews are appreciated. And anyone who has followed this story should know that the prologue got a revamp - It still tells the same scenario, but in better detail. Anyways, thanks for reading. Until next time.**


End file.
